


Bull's Goat

by Seagoatink



Series: Navigator of Dangers [5]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-31
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-08-28 07:30:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8436811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seagoatink/pseuds/Seagoatink
Summary: When she finally managed to reach the top of the stairs in her room, she nearly fell over dramatically, because she was loopy tired, and incredibly bored with her regular day-to-day killing and practice killing routine. But when she turned to round the banister, there stood The Iron Bull, who while looking just as stressed, was trying to appear as though he was in control of the situation. “So, I was getting your hints, and I get it. You want to ride the bull,” he tried to say. But he couldn’t even get halfway through, because Kaaras was so startled she had jumped several feet into the air and nearly fell back down the stairs she had just climbed.





	

As night drew near, Kaaras expected Herald’s Rest to be more crowded and loud. Maybe a smidge less somber and a snippet more energetic. But people were scarce. Rather, there were few refugees present, and not many new recruits. Despite the absence of people, she sat down in front of Cabot at the bar. “What’s going on?” She asked as he poured her a mug of ale.

“Word has it that you’re going dragon hunting in Crestwood,” the dwarf said as he slid her ale across the wood of the bar.

She held it firmly between her hands. Her eyelids were heavy, her eyes tired and dry. “Word traveled fast then,” she said wryly before taking a swig of the amber liquid.

“Your Lady Ambassador claims you have a brother, according to a few of her servants and their wagging tongues,” he added. “Big, scary, mean, Qunari brother. Probably angry too,” he laughed.

Kaaras joined in heartily. “Big? Sure! Scary, maybe to a human. Mean? Pffft!” She caught herself giggling at the thought. “I’m his sister though, maybe he’s just mean to me.” The woman was smiling, stupid smiling. If her brother were there he would be sure to mock her for it too. She raised a hand to cover her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut.

A heavy whack landed between her shoulder blades causing her to spit out her ale back into her mug as The Iron Bull straddled the bar stool beside her and sat down. “I heard you’re going to kill the Northern Hunter near Caer Bronach,” he said with his usual booming voice. In his other hand, he had his own mug with his own ale. Qunari something or another was Kaaras’ best guess, if she had to guess anything. Then he leaned in to her. “I bet your brother is a mighty angry Vashoth too,” he said in a low voice and she could have sworn she could feel the rumble of his voice in her chest.

Kaaras, who was short for a Qunari, stood on her foot and leaned into his ear to whisper, “Saarebas too.” And when she sat back down, the woman winked at Cabot, hoping to throw him in the wrong direction, rather than give off that her brother wielded magic. Then she picked up her mug and downed more ale, backwash and all. “So, Bull,” Kaaras said, “you wanna slay a dragon?”

Cabot turned away and left for the back room to avoid the mood generating between the two Qunari at his bar. Just as Kaaras thought she was open to flirt with Bull, Sera sprung up from seemingly nowhere to take up the empty bar stool to her left. “I heard you’re gonna slay a dragon,” she said, splaying her lanky arms across the bar in front of the tamassran. “It’s gonna be wicked! I wanna be a part of that.”

Sera was personable, relatable. Her goal when joining the Inquisition wasn’t to make the Inquisitor appear to be a person, but most of the time that’s how it felt. The elf was easy to talk to and effortless to get along with. She was straightforward when it came to others, but not always to herself. But Kaaras expected that from her, a rogue, a Friend of Red Jenny. Her motives weren’t sinister, but they were sincere. And the thought of killing a dragon with her, a friend, made Kaaras grin from ear to ear. “Fuck yeah!” She laughed and put her arm around her slender shoulders.

“When are we gonna do it?” Sera asked. Her arm was wrapped around Kaaras’ ribs, the other still sprawled across the bar. Her hand waiting for Cabot to return with a brew just for her.

Kaaras paused her swaying and rested her elbow on the bar next to her mug. “I’d say a week, with travel. Didn’t think I’d have to go back to Crestwood or Caer Bronach so soon,” she admitted. “I just got back two days ago, and I thought I’d be going straight to the Western Approach or maybe to the Forbidden Oasis.”

“What about that thing with Miss Prissy Pants, Queen of Orlais?” Sera wondered. The arm that had wrapped around the Qunari retreated to scratch the elf’s slender back. Then snaked its way across the bar to join its twin, tapping the wood lightly.

“Halamshiral?” The Inquisitor groaned at the thought. “I’m going to be dressed up in some ugly as fuck uniform for that, I just know it,” she grumbled and followed suit by stretching her arms across the bar. She half expected to bump into Bull or his drink, but when she turned to check why she hadn’t run into anyone Kaaras found that he was long gone. 

“Or better yet, Josephine’s gonna make you a puffball in Orlesian fashion!” Sera snickered.

Kaaras returned her gaze to Sera. “Maybe I’d like that,” she said with a smirk. “Or maybe, I’ll bring you along, and you’ll be the puffball!”

“Enough with the scary talk, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Kaaras agreed.

“Gimme yer drink! Cabot’s not gonna turn up!”

“Hell no, this is mine!” The Inquisitor laughed as she stood up and chugged the remains of her ale while Sera mockingly tried to snatch it away from her. “And Cabot’s right there!” She found herself nearly shouting to Sera, despite how near she was. “Get your own.”

“Go to bed!” Sera laughed, playfully pushing Kaaras away to the door. “I’m gonna get wasted -a-and you’re not invited!”

“Bite me!” Kaaras chuckled as she left the tavern to find her room.

While she wasn’t anywhere near drunk or wasted or even tipsy for that matter, she did still feel the slight tingle in her fingertips and the warmth that flushed her face ever so slightly. When she passed Varric in the main hall, he hollered at her for her attention, “Your Inquisitorialness!” The dwarf was seated at the table with papers in front of him, most of them were littered with red marks, but definitely weren’t bills or bank account information by any means. “A little birdy told me you’re getting a dragon hunting party together,” he informed her.

“That I am,” she said, raising her chin so her nose hit a little more air than it normally would. “Or should I be wondering who supplied you that information?” She asked, letting her lips curl upward comically. She raised her hand to her face, allowing her fingers to trace over a mustache that wasn’t there. Had Dorian seen the act, she didn’t know if he were amused or upset she was doing it wrong.

“Tiny told me, if it matters at all,” he chuckled. “And, would you mind letting me sit this one out? My editor just sent me… A disaster… Essentially. It’s going to take a while to figure this shit out,” he said, offering an awkward half smile and shrug.

Kaaras nodded in understanding. “Sera and Bull already volunteered, and I was hoping that Madame de Fer would join us.”

“The Iron Lady?!” Varric’s voice almost cracked with disbelief. “And Buttercup? Together? Are you sure they won’t kill each other?” He joked.

“I’m sure Varric,” the Qunari said. “I’m asking her tomorrow though. I’m a bit tired,” she admitted. “G’night, Varric.”

“Night, Your Inquisitorialness.”

At the end of the Great Hall was the door to her room. And she found herself wondering if she could manage to actually walk up Maker knows how many flights of steps to the door to her room, and then however many extra stairs there were physically in her room. And then, she had no idea if she would just pass out right then and there or if she would fall asleep in her bed, or maybe at her desk, attempting to do paperwork to appease Josephine in the morning.

When she finally managed to reach the top of the stairs in her room, she nearly fell over dramatically, because she was loopy tired, and incredibly bored with her regular day-to-day killing and practice killing routine. But when she turned to round the banister, there stood The Iron Bull, who while looking just as stressed, was trying to appear as though he was in control of the situation. “So, I was getting your hints, and I get it. You want to ride the bull,” he tried to say. But he couldn’t even get halfway through, because Kaaras was so startled she had jumped several feet into the air and nearly fell back down the stairs she had just climbed.

“Holy fuck!!!” She screamed. While Bull didn’t catch her per se, he did grab onto her hand before she could fall down the stairs and crack open her skull or lose a horn. “Shit…” She muttered, as he pulled her away from the stairs and walked her to her bed.

He sat down with her. As much as he had realized how fluffy her mattress was when he was waiting for her to return to her room, it felt different somehow with her there. A little more firm, a little more real, a little more there. Not just some sexual power fantasy or anything those damn Orlesians teased the military or royalty about. “I didn’t mean to scare you, sorry,” Bull apologized as he watched her catch her breath.

“I wouldn’t have been startled if I hadn’t thought you just went to bed or something,” Adaar grumbled under her breath as she balled her hands into fists and took deep breaths. “Shoulda figured this is what I’d get when I tried to get you hot and bothered though,” she laughed meekly.

“Trying?”

She stared up at him and offered up an eyebrow. “You’re whole crew, whole crew. Whole. Crew. Every single one of them, individually said you’ve got this thing for dragons,” she said, wholeheartedly admitting that she had been asking about him. Surely at least a dozen rumors had begun because of it in the past few days. “You talk about it when you get drunk too, everyone in Herald’s Rest, everyone around Herald’s Rest can hear you,” she paused for a moment. “Fuck, I’ve heard you talk about it. Pretty easy to get your goat, Bull.”

He cracked a knowing smirk. She had been paying attention, not that it was hard when he was one of the loudest people at the tavern. But she had been asking around too, and gotten his boys to keep it from him. Plus, he wasn’t wrong, she was trying to get him hot and bothered. Sure as shit, he was hot and bothered. Very bothered actually. Not in a bad way, of course, but damn. Adaar really knew what she was doing. “Speaking of gotten goats,” he started.

“I like turning people on,” Kaaras said, “I’m not always in the mood for what follows…” In the back of her head, she knew he wouldn’t mind, not one bit. But part of her worried about him really finding it a problem. He could easily be upset that she turned him on without any intention of doing anything about his “On” status. “I’m tired, but naked company would be nice,” she said, winking at him.

He laughed, heartily. “I like the way you think.”


End file.
